Jan 17 : Argentina’s Luciano Benavides won the Dakar Rally motorcycle category by two seconds, the narrowest margin ever, after American Ricky Brabec lost his way late in Saturday’s final stage in Saudi Arabia.
The KTM rider, whose older brother Kevin won the Dakar in 2021 and 2023, came home second in the 105-km stage in Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea port of Yanbu, with Honda’s overnight leader Brabec 10th.
In a gruelling endurance event spanning two weeks and 8,000 km over rocky roads, through canyons and vast expanses of desert dunes, twice winner Brabec made his mistake with only a few kilometres remaining.
Spaniard Tosha Schareina finished third overall for Honda.
In the top car category that started later, Dacia driver Nasser Al-Attiyah was heading towards his sixth career victory.
“From the start to the finish I never stopped dreaming, I never stopped believing,” said Benavides, who had trailed Brabec by three minutes and 20 seconds after Friday’s penultimate stage.
“I said to all my people around ‘I don’t know why but I still feel it’s possible, I still believe I can win and it’s going to go my way’.”
“In the last three kilometres, Ricky took a wrong piste and I took a good one… I just saw the opportunity and I took it.”
American Skyler Howes was fourth overall for Honda, ahead of Australia’s 2025 champion Daniel Sanders on a KTM.
Sanders crashed on stage 10 but refused to retire and raced on despite a suspected broken collarbone.
